Technology Background
Wofford received a grant from the Franklin W. Olin Foundation in 1989 to build a six million dollar academic building to include the classroom technology necessary to "transform the college into a national prototype for the ways the liberal arts can be taught and learned with the best and most appropriate technologies." The Olin Building houses our first set of "high-tech" classrooms, each equipped with a Wofford-designed teaching desk, a touchscreen remote control, a ceiling-mounted LCD projection system, a computer with a DVD player, a video presenter, a VCR, cable TV, and ports on the teaching desk for more specialized equipment. The building has been an energizer for the entire college, which now has over fifty such classrooms in several buildings – a large number for a college of around 1200 students.
The next technological development at Wofford was the activation in 1999 of a campus-wide fiber-optic network, which now has over two thousand data ports, located in every building on campus. This was followed two years later by three projects designed to bring network services to the campus. Students, faculty, and staff now have access to shared network resources including Internet access, web-based email, personal network storage, file sharing, printer sharing, and online collaboration and discussion. The Library has implemented an extensive web-based library software system that makes an online catalog, electronic databases and course reserves, and electronic books available to the campus community. The web-based interface to our administrative software system, Banner Web (only accessible within myWofford), allows students to access information, such as admissions and financial aid information, grades, transcripts, the course catalog and schedule, and to register over the web. Alumni also can use Banner Web (only accessible within myWofford) to find information about old friends and classmates, offer to serve as mentors to current students, and view their personal giving history.
The latest addition to Wofford’s technology, which began in 2004, is the ongoing wireless extension of the campus network. Our 802.11g (also known as “Wi-Fi”) wireless network stretches over most of our main campus, giving students mobile access to the Wofford network in almost every area in which they take classes, study, and congregate. This includes the Library, all classroom buildings, most social and study areas, and outdoor areas in the central part of campus.